The National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans Day was proudly supported and recognized by the Buffalo Bills on February 14th at the VA Hospital in Buffalo.
Bills defensive end Dwan Edwards joined Bills Alumni Booker Edgerson, Charlie Ferguson, Lou Piccone, Marlo Perry, Adam Lingner, Hilton Crawford and Bob Dugan and signed autographs and visited patients. The Buffalo Jills Cheerleaders (Keisha, Amanda, Natalie and Meghan) and Billy Buffalo also appeared to show their appreciation of the patriotic men and women who served our country.
The event was personal for Edwards.
"I thought it was a good opportunity to come out and show my appreciation to the people that have given a lot to our country," said Edwards. "It's something that runs deep to my heart. My sister's father served in the military and was in Vietnam. I also have a bunch of guys that I went to school with that are in the armed forces, and they are in Afghanistan right now. So, I'm here to show everyone that the Buffalo Bills are here thinking about all of the troops overseas and here in the VA."
Edwards joined the Bills Alumni and went from room to room delivering Valentine's Day messages and words of thanks and encouragement to the patients.
There are over 6 million Veterans living with a disability. Approximately 1,800 veterans die each day and nearly 1,000 are World War II veterans. These Veterans are family members, neighbors, friends, and co-workers and days like this help Americans remember the service these patriots gave and continue to give.
Booker Edgerson, Bills Wall of Famer and Bills Alumni president, felt strongly about supporting Veterans.
"The Buffalo Bills Alumni have been coming here for the past 12 years and we feel that it's our honor to visit the Veterans and make sure that we do our part," said Edgerson. "We just think that this is something that cannot be left alone. It must be done because our Veterans did a great thing for us and our freedom, and we need to take care of them in return."
